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Help Compiler 1.20 (c) 1993 Alessandro ScottiD  The use of this help system is straightforward and requires only a	few keys:  cursor keys   browse text!  [Tab]         select next topic%  [Shift][Tab]  select previous topic&  [Enter]       jump to selected topic  [Esc]         close help  [Alt][F1]     previous help	How to:!        MOD and DTS overview   !        edit a song            !        play the current song  !        edit and play samples  7  This is the place where you write and modify songs.Cursor movement:&        [Left]          previous field"        [Right]         next field&        [Up]            previous frame"        [Down]          next frame*        [Home]          jump to note field*        [End]           jump to last field%        [PgUp]          previous page!        [PgDn]          next page&        [^Left]         previous track"        [^Right]        next track#        [^PgUp]         first frame"        [^PgDn]         last frame%        [^Home]         top of screen(        [^End]          bottom of screen(        [-]             previous pattern$        [+]             next pattern,        [Alt][F1]..[F4] jump to frame 00..482        [Tab]           jump to the order editor#Input and output, global commands::        [Alt][C]        clear song (doesn't clear samples)3        [Alt][D]        display memory informations=        [Alt][E]        toggle 43/50 line mode (EVA/VGA only)(        [Alt][I]        edit instruments#        [Alt][L]        load module=        [Alt][M]        make SoundTracker compatible module         [Alt][O]        OS shell.        [Alt][P]        play current pattern.        [Alt][R]        read pattern from disk2        [Alt][S]        save current song as DTS=        [Alt][V]        mixer control (SoundBlaster Pro only)-        [Alt][W]        write pattern to disk        [Alt][X]        exit	Seealso:        blocks                  automatic jump          playing songs           macros          F  A module is made of patterns, which are similar to musical measures.BEach pattern contains 64 frames, which are played in sequence. One:frame groups 4 notes, which are played at the same time.  Let's see an example:,        D-3 01    C-2 02    D-2 02    F#2 02,        A-3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..,        F#3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..,        A-3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..,        D-3 01    A#1 02    D-2 02    G-2 02,        A#3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..,        G-3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..,        A#3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..        and so on...  The first frame,,        D-3 01    C-2 02    D-2 02    F#2 02@plays a D7 chord with the last three voices, and the first voice:starts playing the main theme with a different instrument.  Next comes,        A-3 01    ... ..    ... ..    ... ..Dwhich keeps playing on the first track. The blank fields in the lastEthree tracks mean that the sound must not be changed. The D7 chord isDplayed until the fifth frame, when it becomes a G- chord. You cannotDdirectly specify the duration of a note, it depends on the number ofblank notes that follow.A  When the last frame in a pattern has been played (or a "patternDbreak" command is encountered) the player jumps to the first frame4of the pattern that follows in the order sequence.C  Macros are especially useful when you have to enter several timesthe same sequence of keys.>  Up to 10 macros can be defined and assigned to a hotkey fromE[Alt][0] to [Alt][9]. When macro recording in on, all key presses areCrecorded into an internal buffer, you may then recall a sequence of1keys by simply pressing the corresponding hotkey.A  Note: macros cannot be nested and are disabled outside the songeditor.
Commands:5        [^R]            toggle macro recording on/off<  Song patterns are not played in sequential order: to allow@repetitions and longer songs, the sequence in which patterns are4actually played is stored in a separate index array.B  Each index entry contains the number of the actual pattern to be?played in that position or zero, which stays for "end of list".@  For example, suppose that your order sequence looks like this:        ╔════╤═════╗        ║ 00 │   3 ║        ║ 01 │   1 ║        ║ 02 │ ..0 ║        ║ 03 │ ..0 ║        :    │     :        ║ 7D │ ..0 ║        ║ 7E │ ..0 ║        ║ 7F │ ..0 ║        ╚════╧═════╝D  That means: play pattern three first, then pattern one, then stop.CMore precisely, sound is not stopped at the end of list, but ratherDexecution is restarted from the beginning (i.e. from pattern three).C  Of course you may specify the same pattern number more than once,Cthis saves space if a pattern is to be played several times because2you don't need to duplicate it in the song editor.E  To edit the index entry at cursor simply type in the pattern numberfor that position.  Commands:&        [Up]            previous entry"        [Down]          next entry%        [PgUp]          previous page!        [PgDn]          next page4        [Home]          search null pattern backward3        [End]           search null pattern forward$        [Del]           delete entry$        [Ins]           insert entry#        [^PgUp]         top of list#        [^PgDn]         end of list#        [^Home]         top of page#        [^End]          end of page#        [Tab]           song editor.        [Enter]         edit pattern at cursor.        [F5]..[F8]      toggle channels on/off6        [^F3]/[^F4]     decrement/increment song speed9        [F3]/[F4]       decrement/increment global volume5        [^A]            add a semitone to entire song<        [^S]            subtract a semitone from entire songA        [Alt][E]        switch to 43/50 lines mode (EGA/VGA only)*        [Alt][I]        edit instruments#        [Alt][L]        load module         [Alt][O]        OS shell6        [Alt][P]        play entire song from cursor=        [Alt][V]        mixer control (SoundBlaster Pro only)        [Alt][X]        exitD  Blocks are used to perform operations on a group of notes. You canEmark all from a single note to a track or pattern, the marked area isFcalled a "block". Blocks can be copied, moved, deleted and manipulated$in a number of ways, as shown below:,        [^B]            mark block begin/end*        [^T]            mark current track1        [^L]            mark line block begin/end,        [^P]            mark current pattern$        [^U]            unmark block@        [^C]            copy block (block is inserted at cursor)F        [^O]            copy block (block overwrites underlying notes)"        [^M]            move block$        [^D]            delete block:        [^A]            add a halftone to all marked notesA        [^S]            subtract a halftone from all marked notes:        [^V]            set marked notes to default sample-        [^W]            wipe all marked notesC  Usually song editing is track oriented and you want the cursor toAmove vertically rather than horizontally. Also, you often need toDmove the cursor down two or four steps, according to the duration ofBthe notes you are entering. The autojump feature gives you controlBupon these parameters, making it easier and faster to enter notes./        [^F5]..[^F8]    set autojump to 1,2,4,8.        [^J]            toggle autojump on/offF  The command field of a note tells the player that a special action(is to be taken when that note is played.F  There are basically two sets of commands: local commands modify only?the note they refer to, global commands affect the entire song.6  Here is the list of commands supported by Dr. Track:"        Arpeggio         (local)"        Portamento up    (local)"        Portamento down  (local)"        Tone portamento  (local)"        Vibrato          (local)"        Volume slide     (local)#        Pattern jump     (global)#        Volume change    (global)#        Pattern break    (global)#        Speed change     (global).  Syntax:       0       second note/third note  Example:      C-2 01 047A  The current note is changed at very high speed according to theAparameter field. In the example above, the first note is C-2, theEsecond note is E-2 (4 semitones up from C-2, see below) and the thirdAis G-2 (7 halftones up from C-2). These three notes are played inEsequence, one every 1/50th of second, so that it's almost impossibileFto distinguish them. With this command effects like fast arpeggioes ortrills are easily achieved.E  + 0  + 1  + 2  + 3  + 4  + 5  + 6  + 7  + 8  + 9  + A  + B  + C ...E  C-2  C#2  D-2  D#2  E-2  F-2  F#2  G-2  G#2  A-2  A#2  B-2  C-3 ...C  If the parameter field contains no data (i.e. both auxiliary note?displacements are zero), the first note is not modified and the'command is displayed with a single dot.  Syntax:       1       speed  Example:      C-2 01 103*  Increases the pitch of the current note.  Syntax:       2       speed  Example:      C-2 01 203*  Decreases the pitch of the current note.E  Syntax:       destination note        [sample]        3       speed  Example:      E-2 01 305D  The destination note is not played immediately, it is just used asCan argument for the command. It's the current note pitch that moves5towards the destination note, at the specified speed.$  Suppose to have a track like this:        C-2 01 .00        ... .. ...        ... .. ...        E-2 01 305        ... .. 300        ... .. 300  When the player reads        E-2 01 305Eit doesn't play E-2. However, because the pitch of E-2 is higher thanCthat of the last played note (C-2), the current pitch is increased.DIt's likely that the distination note is not reached within a singleEframe, so you have to repeat the tone portamento command until E-2 isFactually played. Fortunately, you don't have to reenter the command inEit's complete form, because the player remembers both the destination4note and speed of the last command. Thus frames like        ... .. 300"suffices to keep portamento going.F  Moreover, when E-2 is reached any portamento command which is not inDthe complete form is ignored, so there's no need to know exactly how<many commands have to be used to reach the destination note."  Syntax:       4       speed/size  Example:      F#3 04 462A  Periodically changes the pitch of the current note. To keep theDlast vibrato effect use the command without parameters. For example:        F#3 04 462        ... .. 400        ... .. 400+  Syntax:       A       up speed/down speed  Example:      C-2 01 A02                ... .. A02D  Slowly changes the volume of the current note. The same command isEused to increase or decrease the volume: if you use the left digit of<the parameter field then volume will be increased, otherwise
decreased.F  When the volume reachs the minimum (maximum) any decrease (increase)volume command is ignored..  Syntax:       B       order entry to jump at  Example:      ... .. B02D  Breaks the current pattern and jumps to the specified entry in theorder list.E  The jump command is executed only after the frame which contains ithas been played.  Syntax:       C       volume  Example:      C-2 01 C20=  Sets the volume of the current note (maximum value is 40h).  Syntax:       D  Example:      ... .. D00B  Jumps out from the current pattern. Execution continues from the next pattern in the order array.  Syntax:       F       speed  Example:      ... .. F055  Sets the song speed. Valid values are 00h thru 0Fh.;  A single note consists of several fields, as shown below:        ┌─────── note        │ ┌───── octave        │ │  ┌── sample        │ │ ─┴        C-2 06 047               │└┤%               │ └ command parameters               └── commandC  Inside the song editor, notes are entered from keyboard, which is?arranged to emulate a piano keyboard (er, you may need a bit of	fantasy):&       1     2           5     6     7/    Q     W     E     R     T     Y     U     I&       S     D           G     H     J/    Z     X     C     V     B     N     M     ,1  Shift the first octave to access the third one.@  To edit other fields, move the cursor on them and type a legalvalue.F  The sample field of a note contains the index of the instrument toBbe used when that note is played. Legal values range from 0 to 31:Fwhen the index is 0 the last specified sample is used, otherwise a new)sample is selected for the current track.>  Samples can be loaded and modified with the sample editor.B  The sample editor is where you load and modify instruments. It'sDdivided in two windows: the selection window (lower) and the editingwindow (upper).@  The selection window lists all instruments currently loaded in@memory. The number on the left of each sample is the index whichEidentifies that instrument in the song editor. You can use the cursorEkeys to move the selection bar across the list and then press [Enter]5or [Tab] to edit the selected sample. Other keys are:!        [Alt-A] save all samples;/        [Alt-B] load a sample from a library;/        [Alt-C] remove all samples from memory;>        [Alt-E] toggle between 25 and 43/50 lines video modes;?        [Alt-L] load a sample from disk into the selected slot;        [Alt-O] OS shell;1        [Alt-S] save the selected sample on disk.D  The editing window allows you to change the instrument parameters.?If you need help enter the editing window and press [F1] on the
desired item.F  Sample libraries are an easy yet powerful way to organize samples ondisk.A  On start Dr. Track looks for a file named "DRT.LIB", which is a:simple ASCII text file containing information about sampleFdirectories. The structure of that file is straightforward, here is anexample:   ;***   ;*** DRT.LIB example   ;***8   c:\drt\samples               Default sample directory%   c:\drt\samples\synth         Synth2   c:\samples\perco             Drums, percussions?  Lines starting with a ";" character are comments and are justDignored, other lines contains two fields: the DOS directory name andthe corresponding library name.B  Using libraries you select directories by library names, not DOS0names. This simple approach has many advantages:H- library names are easier to remember and more "descriptive" than the  corresponding DOS names;E- the directory name may have any length (if libraries are not used@  only the first 32 characters of a directory name are stored in  sample files);F- directories may be moved or renamed, and only the DRT.LIB file hasB  to be changed: this automatically updates all songs which refers  to library names.B  The last point is very important: sample pathnames are stored inEsong files (DTS), so if you rename a directory, some .DTS files may?still reference the old name. When loading such files Dr. TrackFallows you to skip the misnamed sample and add it later, but it's much5better to use libraries and avoid the problem at all.A  When editing a sample directory name you may use library names,Cadding the character "=" to the beginning (i.e. "=Synth", "=Drums",etc.).@  Samples can be played "one-shot" or "looped". A sample, i.e. aBdigitized instrument, is played "one-shot" when it hasn't a repeat?part: this means that when the last byte in the sample has beenplayed, the sound stops.?  On the other side, when the last byte of a "looped" sample isDreached, the sample is played again starting at the offset specified@by the "repeat start" parameter: the repeat part is played untilEanother event cause the process to be interrupted (e.g. a new note, acommand, etc.).D  The repeat part contains "repeat length" bytes starting at "repeatEstart". Note that for one-shot samples the repeat length is 0002h andnot 0000h (zero).5                    ┌─────── repeat length ───────┐3                    │                             │@  ssssssssssssssssssrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeee                    │+                    └ repeat start offsetD  Because Dr. Track can play in the background dynamically adjustingDto new parameters, you can modify the "repeat" values on the fly andChear how the sound changes. This special feature will help you much'when experimenting with looped samples.
Commands:'        [Left] or [-]   decrement value'        [Right] or [+]  increment value&        [^Left]         fast decrement&        [^Right]        fast increment%        [Home]          minimum value%        [End]           maximum valueC  This parameter controls the default volume of an instrument, i.e.>the volume used to play the instrument in a song when no othercommands are specified.	Commands:'        [Left] or [-]   decrement value'        [Right] or [+]  increment value&        [^Left]         fast decrement&        [^Right]        fast increment%        [Home]          minimum value%        [End]           maximum valueB  This is the directory in which this sample will be saved. If the@name is preceeded by the "=" character, then it's interpreted asAa library name and the corresponding DOS directory is retrievedCfrom the library configuration file ("DRT.LIB"). You may also press2[Alt][B] and pick a library from the current list.<  This is the file name used when samples are saved on disk.E  This is the name of the sample. Because under DOS file names cannot@be longer than 12 characters, Dr. Track uses this field both forEcompatibility with the Amiga format and to store sample descriptions.*It's this name that's stored in MOD files.E  The line editor is called whenever the user needs to input a stringof text.D  When you enter the line editor, the current string is highlited toBmean that it has not been modified yet. If you want to modify this@string then strike any non-character key (e.g. [End] or [Left]),Eotherwise the old string will be automatically deleted when you starttyping a new one.  Commands:0        [Esc]           discard changes and exit/        [Enter]         accept changes and exit&        [Left]          character left'        [Right]         character right)        [Home]          beginning of line#        [End]           end of line!        [^Left]         word left"        [^Right]        word right7        [^Home]         delete to the beginning of line1        [^End]          delete to the end of line(        [Del]           delete character-        [BackSpace]     delete character left4        [Alt][C]  clear song (doesn't clear samples)-        [Alt][D]  display memory informations7        [Alt][E]  toggle 43/50 line mode (EVA/VGA only)"        [Alt][I]  edit instruments        [Alt][L]  load module@        [Alt][M]  make and save module (SoundTracker compatible)        [Alt][O]  OS shell(        [Alt][R]  read pattern from disk?        [Alt][S]  save song (compressed module without samples)7        [Alt][V]  mixer control (SoundBlaster Pro only)'        [Alt][W]  write pattern to disk        [Alt][X]  exit to DOSB  Dr. Track's built-in player allows you to hear an entire song or#just the pattern you are composing.F  The player is activated with [Alt][P]. From the song editor only theEcurrent pattern will be played, so that you can immediately listen toByour recent work. From the order editor the entire song is played,)starting at the current pattern position.5  When playing, these special features are available:)        real time recording and testing)        OS shell                       )        volume control and fade out      Press [Esc] to stop music.@  Pressing [Alt][F5] (or [Alt][F6], etc. for the other channels)Eenters the "real-time recording" mode: when "rec" is active a messageChighlights on the selected channel and the notes you enter from theFkeyboard are placed right into the song data, at the current position.E  Pressing [Alt][F5] again enters the "real-time testing" mode, whichBis the same as the "rec" mode except that notes are played but notsaved.9  Another [Alt][F5] disables both "rec" and "test" modes.E  Notes are played according to the current default sample, which may#be changed with the following keys:+  [^F1] or [F9]   decrement default sample;+  [^F2] or [F10]  increment default sample.D  Because Dr. Track is able to play in the background, you can shell/to DOS with [Alt][O] and let the music playing.D  The player doesn't need any of the standard interrupts and is very?fast, so it cannot interfere with the programs you run, howeverDremember that in most cases the amount of memory available to DOS isClimited. Please don't run any program which uses the SoundBlaster'sEDAC, that will probably hang your system when you exit from shell (by'the way, it's all right with FM chips).B  You can control the output volume with [F3] (decrement) and [F4]?(increment). This are expecially useful when recording songs onDtape (if you use EMM386, QEMM or similar products you should disable3them before running DRT to get best sound quality).#  Press [Alt][F] to fade music out.F  Also, channel may be turned on and off pressing [F5], [F6], [F7] and1[F8] for channels #1, #2, #3 and #4 respectively.B  It's the title of the current song or module and may be up to 22?characters long. This string is saved in MOD and DTS files.	Seealso:        line editor            song filename  B  It's the DOS filename used to write a MOD file on disk after a8make module command ([Alt][M] from the song editor).F  When saving the file in DTS format, the extension is automaticallychanged in .DTS.	Seealso:        line editor            song name      @  MOD files contain all that's needed to play and edit a song:Epatterns and samples are merged in a single file which is then called?a "module". Dr. Track is binary compatible with Amiga MOD files8created with the SoundTracker and NoiseTracker programs.C  DTS files are unique to Dr. Track. They store only patterns andCsome extra information in a mildly compressed format. Actual sampleAdata is not saved within DTS files: it contains only the names ofCthe samples used. When you read such a file these names are used toCretrieve sample data from disk, which saves a lot of space when youEhave samples that are used in different songs. Sample names may refer:to DOS directories or, much better, to sample libraries.
HelpOnHelp3$Song/module editor,┌$$The structure of a module!÷Keyboard macros
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Order editor<Blocks▐Automatic jumphSoundTracker commands	

Arpeggio	⌐
Portamento up
π"Portamento downH#Tone portamento!¡#Vibrato
	l(Volume slide
l)Pattern jump+
Volume change≈+
Pattern breakp,Speed change-Note structurer-Note: sample field*0
Sample editord1Sample libraries%"5$Sample repeat/startÇ;
Sample volume±@Sample directoryüBSample filename╛CSample name√CLine editor≤DI/O commandsvH
MOD playeròJ !Real-time recording and testing
╩LDOS shell and playback iOVolume control and fade out!ZQ	Song name"≤R$$#
Song filename#╡S$$"MOD and DTS file overview$╩T